Tickets are now on sale and going fast for the main event of the city’s newest festival. Square One is a 17-day exhibition at the Art Gallery of St. Albert. It will be open to the public and is set to run June 7 to 23.
Tickets are now on sale and going fast for the main event of the city’s newest festival.
Square One is a 17-day exhibition at the Art Gallery of St. Albert. It will be open to the public and is set to run June 7 to 23. The show will feature more than 250 original works of art from an extensive list of local visual artists, each piece on sale for a solid $200. There will be other items up for auction and there will be raffles as well to go along with all of the fun, festivities and entertainment.
On June 16, the gallery will host a gala fundraiser in the hopes of selling all the art pieces. The event will take the place of its former art auction fundraiser that ran for 22 years. That means that everyone, especially director of arts Frances Gagnon, has high hopes for a successful first outing.
“It’s very exciting,” she declared, stating that the donated works are of excellent quality. “They are much more innovative, some amazing ideas that I could never have expected. The buzz is out.”
She added that she expects to meet or beat a typical take of $20,000 that the gallery would achieve from the art auction.
All funds raised go to the gallery’s exhibitions and programs such as its children’s art workshops that see enrolment of more than 25,000 students each year.
“People start to see what a public art gallery can do. It’s central to contributing to a healthy community. They realize that it’s more than just art; it’s creating community.”
Featured artists include some well-known names in the visual arts community, plus some lesser known ones. Attendees will see works by Nell Sadee and Tom Yurko right next to Nolan Crouse and Father Douglas.
There will also be a range of art-inspired items on the block (such as tickets to the Citadel and Edmonton Symphony Orchestra) as well.
The entertainment will feature live music plus the audience can watch an artist paint a masterpiece right before its eyes. Gagnon also promises some surprises, one of which sounds like a garden party.
Tickets for the fundraising gala are $50. The event takes place on June 16 with the doors open at 7 p.m. Sales of artwork will continue until June 23.
Visit the gallery at 19 Perron Street or the office of Arts and Heritage St. Albert across the street at 20 Perron Street to get your tickets.
Call 780-460-4310 or visit www.artgalleryofstalbert.ca for more information.
